Homer : The Underworld ( Odyssey - Rhapsody 11 )

My mother answered, 'Your wife still remains in your house, but she is in great distress of mind and spends her whole time in tears both night and day. No one as yet has got possession of your fine property, and Telemachus still holds your lands undisturbed. He has to entertain largely, as of course he must, considering his position as a magistrate, and how every one invites him; your father remains at his old place in the country and never goes near the town. He has no comfortable bed nor bedding; in the winter he sleeps on the floor in front of the fire with the men and goes about all in rags, but in summer, when the warm weather comes on again, he lies out in the vineyard on a bed of vine leaves thrown any how upon the ground. He grieves continually about your never having come home, and suffers more and more as he grows older. As for my own end it was in this wise: heaven did not take me swiftly and painlessly in my own house, nor was I attacked by any illness such as those that generally wear people out and kill them, but my longing to know what you were doing and the force of my affection for you--this it was that was the death of me.'

Then I tried to find some way of embracing my poor mother's ghost. Thrice I sprang towards her and tried to clasp her in my arms, but each time she flitted from my embrace as it were a dream or phantom, and being touched to the quick I said to her, 'Mother, why do you not stay still when I would embrace you? If we could throw our arms around one another we might find sad comfort in the sharing of our sorrows even in the house of Hades; does Proserpine want to lay a still further load of grief upon me by mocking me with a phantom only?'

ὣς ἐφάμην͵ ἡ δ΄ αὐτίκ΄ ἀμείβετο πότνια μήτηρ· καὶ λίην κείνη γε μένει τετληότι θυμῷ σοῖσιν ἐνὶ μεγάροισιν· ὀϊζυραὶ δέ οἱ αἰεὶ φθίνουσιν νύκτες τε καὶ ἤματα δάκρυ χεούσῃ. σὸν δ΄ οὔ πώ τις ἔχει καλὸν γέρας͵ ἀλλὰ ἕκηλος Τηλέμαχος τεμένεα νέμεται καὶ δαῖτας ἐΐσας δαίνυται͵ ἃς ἐπέοικε δικασπόλον ἄνδρ΄ ἀλεγύνειν· πάντες γὰρ καλέουσι. πατὴρ δὲ σὸς αὐτόθι μίμνει ἀγρῷ οὐδὲ πόλινδε κατέρχεται· οὐδέ οἱ εὐναὶ δέμνια καὶ χλαῖναι καὶ ῥήγεα σιγαλόεντα͵ ἀλλ΄ ὅ γε χεῖμα μὲν εὕδει ὅθι δμῶες ἐνὶ οἴκῳ͵ ἐν κόνι ἄγχι πυρός͵ κακὰ δὲ χροῒ εἵματα εἷται· αὐτὰρ ἐπὴν ἔλθῃσι θέρος τεθαλυῖά τ΄ ὀπώρη͵ πάντῃ οἱ κατὰ γουνὸν ἀλῳῆς οἰνοπέδοιο φύλλων κεκλιμένων χθαμαλαὶ βεβλήαται εὐναί. ἔνθ΄ ὅ γε κεῖτ΄ ἀχέων͵ μέγα δὲ φρεσὶ πένθος ἀέξει σὸν νόστον ποθέων· χαλεπὸν δ΄ ἐπὶ γῆρας ἱκάνει. οὕτω γὰρ καὶ ἐγὼν ὀλόμην καὶ πότμον ἐπέσπον· οὔτ΄ ἐμέ γ΄ ἐν μεγάροισιν ἐΰσκοπος ἰοχέαιρα οἷσ΄ ἀγανοῖσι βέλεσσιν ἐποιχομένη κατέπεφνεν͵ οὔτε τις οὖν μοι νοῦσος ἐπήλυθεν͵ ἥ τε μάλιστα τηκεδόνι στυγερῇ μελέων ἐξείλετο θυμόν· ἀλλά με σός τε πόθος σά τε μήδεα͵ φαίδιμ΄ Ὀδυσσεῦ͵ σή τ΄ ἀγανοφροσύνη μελιηδέα θυμὸν ἀπηύρα.

ὣς ἔφατ΄͵ αὐτὰρ ἐγώ γ΄ ἔθελον φρεσὶ μερμηρίξας μητρὸς ἐμῆς ψυχὴν ἑλέειν κατατεθνηυίης. τρὶς μὲν ἐφωρμήθην͵ ἑλέειν τέ με θυμὸς ἀνώγει͵ τρὶς δέ μοι ἐκ χειρῶν σκιῇ εἴκελον ἢ καὶ ὀνείρῳ ἔπτατ΄· ἐμοὶ δ΄ ἄχος ὀξὺ γενέσκετο κηρόθι μᾶλλον͵ καί μιν φωνήσας ἔπεα πτερόεντα προσηύδων· μῆτερ ἐμή͵ τί νύ μ΄ οὐ μίμνεις ἑλέειν μεμαῶτα͵ ὄφρα καὶ εἰν Ἀΐδαο φίλας περὶ χεῖρε βαλόντε ἀμφοτέρω κρυεροῖο τεταρπώμεσθα γόοιο; ἦ τί μοι εἴδωλον τόδ΄ ἀγαυὴ Περσεφόνεια ὤτρυν΄͵ ὄφρ΄ ἔτι μᾶλλον ὀδυρόμενος στεναχίζω; ὣς ἐφάμην͵ ἡ δ΄ αὐτίκ΄ ἀμείβετο πότνια μήτηρ·

Homer Bilingual Anthology : THE UNDERWORLD - 7

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